The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.In the iron ore market, supply issues including heavy rains at the start of the year, followed by staffing problems during the Covid-19 pandemic, have affected exports from Brazil. This has helped Australia gain a larger market share, but since June, Brazilian export volumes have returned to levels last seen before the...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts are ready to view.Chinese blast furnace (BF) utilization rates have stagnated and iron ore port stock volumes are rising, reaching their highest levels since March, which suggests that iron ore supply is becoming excessive while demand is not growing. Unsurprisingly, prices dropped last week and we expect the trend to continue. The market has...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts is ready to view.Prices of stainless steel are generally set to reach highs for the year as 2020 comes to a close. For the most common nickel-containing grades of stainless steel, this upward trend is being driven above all by rising nickel prices, which themselves are hitting relatively high levels into the end of 2020.The price increases si...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts is ready to view.While much commentary has been written about Asian economies performing far better than those elsewhere this year during the global Covid-19 pandemic, it is stainless steel markets in Europe and the United States that are ending the year in better shape than their Asian counterparts.We do not talk of demand levels or demand g...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts is ready to view.While a world leader in many areas, the United States is a relatively small player when it comes to stainless steel. It produces a small amount of material, both in absolute and relative terms (i.e. compared to the size of its population), while a large share of its industry is in the hands of bigger European companies. Never...Read More
The latest forecasts from Fastmarkets' team of analysts is ready to view.Having found it easier to increase prices than their counterparts in Europe and the United States during the past few months, Asian stainless steelmakers now face a number of concerns.In the short term, Asian prices have moved down in recent weeks while those in Europe and the US are on the up. This is mostly a reflection of...Read More
Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Northern Europe were stable day on day on Tuesday January 12 following an increase a day earlier, sources have told Fastmarkets.Fastmarkets calculated its daily steel hot-rolled coil index, domestic, exw Northern Europe, at ?,?688.00 ($837.09) per tonne on Tuesday, unchanged day on day.On Monday, the index had jumped by ?,?20.50 per tonne day on day.The index...Read More
The three-month nickel contract was the biggest gainer on Tuesday January 12 with a 3% rise in a broad-based reversal of fortunes for base metals on the London Metals Exchange, due to expectations of further Covid-19 stimulus in the United States. Nickel's three-month price bounced back by 3.4% on Tuesday at 5pm to $17,668 per tonne, coming back to levels seen at the end of the first week of Janua...Read More
Extreme tin shortages in the United States have catapulted the domestic premiums to their highest levels since Fastmarkets began these assessments, with the in-warehouse Baltimore and ddp Midwest US premiums jumping by 32.17% and 44% respectively in the past two weeks.Desperate buyers anticipating shipping delays have paid whatever it takes to keep their operations going, Fastmarkets understands....Read More
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has directed the closure of mining operations on Tumbagaan Island in Languyan, in the province of Tawi-Tawi, to rehabilitate the area, the Philippine News Agency reported on Tuesday January 12."The island has, at this point, been mined out. And while rehabilitation efforts are underway, the President is issuing a directive to stop any and all mining in Tumbagaa...Read More
The London Metal Exchange three-month nickel price increased by over 3% during morning trading on Tuesday January 12, with the rest of the base metals' prices also rising in an episode of dip-buying following the price decline across the complex on Monday. Nickel's three-month price rose by 3.2% to $17,620 per tonne as of 9am on Tuesday, after a decline of 3.3% took its closing price to $17,086 pe...Read More
After further weakness in the base metals on Monday January 11, that saw the complex close down by an average of 1.5%, prices were up across the board on the London Metal Exchange this morning but those on the Shanghai Futures Exchange base metals prices were down across the board while they followed yesterday's performance on the LME. Asian-Pacific equities were mixed this morningGold prices were...Read More
Zambia-based blister copper producer Chambishi Copper Smelter (CCS) has agreed to supply the intermediate copper product to China's Jiangxi Copper at $145 per tonne cif China for 2021, Fastmarkets learned on Tuesday January 12. Last year, the contract between CCS and Jiangxi Copper - the biggest Chinese importer of blister copper - was settled at $128 per tonne cif China. The...Read More
Hot-rolled coil prices in the United States extended their new year's rally, establishing a new 12 1/2-year high and derailing the prior idea that the first quarter will deliver pricing and volume relief to America's steel-consuming industries. Fastmarkets' daily steel hot-rolled coil index was calculated at $55.72 per hundredweight ($1,114.40 per short ton) on Tuesday January 12, an increase of 2...Read More
Exporters of steel billet from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) are facing stiff resistance from buyers reluctant accept their higher offer prices, sources told Fastmarkets on Tuesday January 12.Official offers for March shipment billet have been reported as high as $625 per tonne fob Black Sea.But bids from Turkey, a key export outlet for CIS billet, have been hear...Read More
RAPAPORT... Pandora has warned it is uncertain how the escalation in Covid-19 cases will impact its 2021 sales, as more stores close. Approximately 25% of the Danish jeweler's locations are currently on lockdown, as opposed to the 10% of brick-and-mortar shops that were closed at the end of the fourth quarter, the company said Monday.The jeweler expects revenue growth for the fourth quarter t...Read More
RAPAPORT... The largest rough-trading centers face a busy January as adaptations have enabled them to continue holding sales events during the pandemic. Antwerp and Dubai will host 14 rough tenders between them this month, after 2020 proved relatively strong despite the coronavirus outbreak. Technology has allowed sellers to offer goods remotely. At the same time, rough prices at tenders were...Read More
RAPAPORT... Erwan Rambourg is certain that luxury sales will increase in the coming decade as companies adapt to emerging trends and respond to societal forces. The industry analyst previews this new landscape in his recently released book Future Luxe: What's Ahead for the Business of Luxury - complete with "21 predictions for '21 and beyond." How has Covid-19 impacted the luxury industry?After a...Read More
Flat steel import prices in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia went up over the past week with higher offers and bids, market sources said on Tuesday January 12.Buyers believed that offer prices were too high and asked for discounts, but sellers did not accept the lower bids. As a result, no deals were heard."Bookings are very slow in the UAE due to the heavy increase in prices," one...Read More
Steel rebar and billet prices in the United Arab Emirates rose again in the week to Tuesday January 12 because of higher offers and market indications, but most rebar producers are yet to announce new prices for February production, sources said. Demand for billet and rebar from end users was moderate to strong during the week, sources added. Domestic rebar Steel producers sold rebar at 2,259-2,29...Read More